Your home’s fall
to-do list

Do it by November 15

$67

per system, through December 31

Get the heat checked before the first cold night

ENERGY STAR says get the heat checked every fall, before you need it. A furnace burns gas in your house, and carbon monoxide kills more than 400 Americans a year outside of fires. Source: ENERGY STAR, CDC.

• The yearly tune-up on your furnace or heat pump, before you lean on the heat. If something’s wrong, you hear what it is, what it costs and what happens if you leave it, then you decide.

Add a reminder: Google Calendar or Apple and Outlook

Do it by November 30

$199

normally $298, a year of Comfort+ included

Clean the dryer vent

Failure to clean is the leading cause of home dryer fires: 32% of the 13,820 a year the NFPA counted. The U.S. Fire Administration says clean the vent every year. Source: NFPA, U.S. Fire Administration.

• We put a camera in the line, show you what’s in it, then clean it from the back of the dryer to the hood outside, with before and after photos when we can get a clear shot.

Buy one, gift one: book by october 31. How the gift works

Add a reminder: Google Calendar or Apple and Outlook

Do it by December 15

$99

normally $199

Flush the water heater

A. O. Smith says most tank water heaters need a flush at least once a year, more with hard water. Fairfax Water’s Potomac plant averaged about 7.7 grains of hardness per gallon in 2025, and that mineral settles in the bottom of your tank. Source: A. O. Smith, Fairfax Water.

• We drain and flush the tank, check the anode rod and test the relief valve, then go through the house’s plumbing with photos.

Add a reminder: Google Calendar or Apple and Outlook